


Peace and Quiet

by Fidollwa



Category: Hollow Knight (Video Games)
Genre: Angst, Bleak, Character Death, Im just sad about these void children, Injury, Serious Injuries, Supposed to be before the birthplace cutscene but eh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:14:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24709696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fidollwa/pseuds/Fidollwa
Summary: Not all of the vessels were born into the abyss at the same time. A constant stream of struggling to the top, were only one ended up making it out.This isn't about them though. This is the ending of one of those less fortunate vessels.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 9





	Peace and Quiet

The abyss was never silent.

Lying there in a broken heap in the piles and piles of it's similarly broken siblings, this vessel thought about the quiet. They had never seen up above and outside of the abyss was a mystery. It was where everyone else lived, surely. Those that were more substantial than a ball of the void and a thin shell. Was it just as loud up there?

Down here it was never quiet. Their siblings who had already perished had been reduced to mere shades. After shedding their fragile little shells, they simply wandered aimlessly about. Maybe it was better that way. At least as a shade they could go much further than their broken bodies could ever take them. There were so many of them now that the sounds overlapped, the clamor of thousands upon thousands of it's siblings blotted nearly every other sound out. Would their siblings remain this way, they wondered, or would this place finally fall silent? Their existence was so short already it seemed appropriate.

The cacophony was broken by the sharp crack of another of their siblings meeting their end. Among them only the strongest even managed to attempt to climb. By the number raining back down, they doubted any had made it yet. Many more still hatched to replace them. They could barely see their sibling's shell cracking in half, a shade bursting out. Most perished outright from the fall.

But not this vessel. Not immediately anyways. 

The initial pain had dulled to a distant ache, throbbing in protest whenever they moved. If they thought about it the most the vessel was feeling was resignation. They were in no condition to climb now. Though they'd lived through the initial fall, their shell bore so many spiderweb cracks they might shatter if they moved the wrong way. Something vital seemed to ooze out all the while. It was merely a waiting game until they joined the rest of their siblings. 

With a silent huff, the vessel closed their eyes. Tried to imagine what was at the top. To imagine what the light looked like when they'd never even seen it. They'd fallen barely after they started to climb after all.

Briefly, they wondered where the smaller siblings were. The more tiny and frail among them never had a chance to ascend. They watched, silent as the stronger of them travelled upwards. 

Did their small siblings try to climb anyways? This vessel hadn't seen any since they'd fallen. They could hope the tiny creatures made it. Or at the very least their falls were enough to where they perished outright.

Finally, in among the sounds of their siblings, this vessels shell shuddered one last time. They faded off with thoughts of the quiet above.

**Author's Note:**

> This was sort of, kinda, vaguely inspired by a lovely little animation you can find here: 
> 
> https://youtu.be/mPpTrk0-uf8
> 
> It's just wonderfully sad so go give it a watch.


End file.
